


Is it Future or is it Past ?

by rainbowl



Category: Twin Peaks
Genre: M/M, Present time, also my english is bad, au where everything ends up okay at the end of season 3, it's the ot3 but it's really only albert and harry, kinda angsty I guess but not too much, they eat french food and albert talk about star trek, this is denial I know, with old albert and old harry and old dale
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-18
Updated: 2017-06-18
Packaged: 2018-11-15 14:06:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11232594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainbowl/pseuds/rainbowl
Summary: Albert and Harry end up in a French restaurant.





	Is it Future or is it Past ?

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by this card saying that Albert likes french food, and Harry loves japanese food. Set after S3, or alternate S3, as you want.

Sure, they had a lot of differences. Harry loved the countryside, Albert big cities, and Dale fell in love with Twin Peaks - though, none of them wanted to live in this cursed town, now. Dale sometimes would say “Still, the trees were beautiful” and Harry and Albert would change the subject right away.  
One of their problem was food, especially for dates. Harry wanted to eat Japanese, Albert wanted to eat French, and then, Cooper said something like «the good old pies of Twin Peaks", with a weird light in his eyes, and it was creepy enough to force Albert and Harry to stop fighting. They ended up eating Italian, most of the time. Dale didn’t talk about Twin Peaks, and everyone was happy. Sort of.  
But this night, Dale wasn't here. He was eating with Diane, and Albert and Harry was left alone. As Harry watched Dale leaving, he realized it was the first time since Dale came back. Not that Albert and him didn't see each other before Dale's return, but it was a different situation. They were united by their love for Dale - damn, Albert would killed him for such a sappy thought. But it was true! Not that they didn't get along, but Dale was truly the reason they talked to each other. And even now, even if Dale was with both of them, they barely interacted. They didn't avoid each other, they were just so focused on Dale, so worried about him when he mentioned Twin Peaks, the woods, the owls or whatever.  
Albert especially seemed so angry when Dale talked about Twin Peaks, and Harry always felt guilty. It wasn't his fault, but he was from Twin Peaks, he was, whether he wanted or not, a constant reminder of Dale's disappearance, for twenty five long years, of the weird stuffs in the wood, of Albert's inability to help Cooper in the past. Albert never blamed him: it didn't stop him to blame himself. Some days, he could see the mark of the punch he gave to Albert that day at the morgue.  
As he was still thinking, Albert surprised him:  
\- So, Harry... French or Japanese tonight? Just kidding, like you have a choice - I'm the one leading this rendez-vous.  
His French accent wasn't bad. His own thought made Harry blush. Clearly Albert wanted to fight, he was more provocative than usual, maybe because he would rather argue with Harry, rather than talk about anything else. But Harry didn't want to play:  
\- As you want, Albert.  
Albert seemed almost disappointed.  
-Of course we do what I want. Years of eating at the Double R must have ruined your taste.  
Again, it sounded like a provocation. Actually, it didn't sound like Albert at all, it was really mean, even for him. It was fake. He stared at Harry, waiting him to protest, to be embarrassed, to do something, to punch him maybe? What was he expecting? Did he want to ruin the evening just to avoid spending it with him?  
It was so transparent - Harry thought FBI agent could be more subtle than that. He could have asked why the hell they would have a "rendez-vous", they weren't together after all, but hey, he liked challenge.  
\- Sure, Albert. Let's go.  
Whether Albert wanted it or not, Harry would not leave his side. Not tonight.  
***  
The restaurant looked nice, Harry had to admit it. A little fancy, certainly expensive, but, for one special night, it was worth it, he guessed. One special night, hum? Sure.  
He came here to annoy Albert, and now... He didn’t know. Albert himself didn't seem to know what to do with him. He was staring at the menu, obviously not looking at him, like a teenager.  
Until he suddenly dropped the menu:  
"This is ridiculous."  
It was an understatement.  
\- This is my fault.  
Well, that was new.  
\- I don't know why I invited you. We can still go home, we didn't order yet, it's...  
He stopped when Harry took his hand.  
\- I like this place.  
Albert looked at him like he was crazy, and maybe he was. But he was still holding Albert's hand, and Albert didn't push him. Then, Albert just shrugged like he didn't care:  
\- Whatever. Don't complain if you're bored to death, or if the food doesn't taste like your Double R's pies.  
Ex-Sheriff Harry Truman, with all his experience, could swear Albert was blushing. Just a little, but just enough.  
***  
So it was really a date.  
They talked about anything except Dale and Twin Peaks. Harry talked about his brother "a good guy, a good sheriff", and Albert said "not sure if he rocks as good as you the farmer's fashion" which was mean but also a compliment, maybe?  
Albert talked about Tammy, "smart girl", Gordon "loud", and, for some reasons, he talked about Star Trek. Apparently he didn't like the new movie or something. Harry admitted he never watched Star Trek, but he did mention he stumbled on Leonard Nimoy by accident one day.  
Albert's face was everything. Even if Harry told him it was really nothing, he just sort of saw him across the street, Albert urged him to tell him everything. Harry learnt so much about Star Trek and Nimoy that night. Did Harry know Albert used to have a huge poster of Star Trek in his apartment, and did Harry know Albert dumped his first boyfriend because he once said "Star Wars is better", and did Harry know that the "live, long and prosper" salute... come on Harry, you never saw it? And Albert made the salute with his own hand. Well, did Harry know this iconic salute was based on a Jewish benediction ritual, according to Nimoy? Actually, Spock as a character was based on Nimoy's experience as a minority, wasn't it amazing?  
It was certainly amazing, and the more amazing thing was to see Albert, who was now more than fifty years old, talking about Star Trek with the same passion he had when he first saw it. Harry stopped asking questions - he just smiled and listened.  
***  
They came home to find a note, by Dale, saying that he was to going to spend the night with Diane. He didn’t explain why. None of them asked. They guessed when they both realized they would have a whole night without him, just the both of us. Dale has always been more perceptive, after all.  
Harry wasn’t really sure about the next step. Should he just say goodnight and go to sleep? He didn’t want to, but Albert… Oh man. Harry was also an old man now, but his seductions skills wasn’t better now than yesterday.  
Albert picked up two glasses and a bottle of wine. Like alcohol would help. They sit around the kitchen table, quite awkwardly. Did Harry feel lucky? He did feel lucky:  
\- I’m sorry about that punch in the face.  
That was weird; he was talking like it happened yesterday. Like they weren’t far away from Twin Peaks, like they weren’t two old men in a modern kitchen.  
\- And I’m sorry about Dale. About what happened to Dale. I guess you were right about Twin Peaks, after all.  
Albert was drinking, slowly. Harry could see his hands were shaking, slightly.  
\- It was not your fault, Harry. It was nobody’s fault. It was Twin Peaks, it could have been anywhere else. Just Cooper and his… fucking demons. Pittsburg, Twin Peaks…  
And, as he took a cigarette:  
\- It’s always the same. He found a new Caroline. A new bond. A new cause. A new way to escape his problems. Always the same.  
Harry chuckled:  
\- Glad it’s different, now. With us.  
Albert didn’t answer, but his eyes were screaming, and Harry wasn’t that deaf:  
\- It’s different, now. It’s really is. Besides… We also have each other now, right?  
Albert smiled, not a really nice smile, a bitter one:  
\- In France, they call that “la méthode Coué”. It’s when you try to persuade yourself of something by saying it again and again. “Everything is going to be okay”, “There is no problem”, “I’m fine”. I call that denial.  
Harry wasn’t ready for that special kind of negativity, a specialty of Albert. He changed the subject the only way he knew:  
\- When you said you loved me, did you mean it?  
He tried to not sound desperate, to try not to sound like he asked himself this question a thousand times, not like he wanted to ask Albert this same question since they met again. Albert didn’t pretend to not remember:  
\- Yes.  
He didn’t seem embarrassed; he was just telling the truth. He didn’t seem surprised by the question neither; certainly he was expecting it since that day. Harry nodded. It was the confirmation he was expecting. He was a man of action, so he got up, he walked to Albert, he leaned to him and he kissed him.  
It wasn’t a passionate kiss. It was a kiss that had to happen. It was a wine kiss, almost a practical kiss, but still, a tender kiss. Albert got up to put his hands on Harry’s shoulders, like it was the most natural thing to do, and when their mouths separated, his head fell on Harry’s neck. He only said, as an excuse, at least, it sounded like an excuse:  
\- I’m tired.  
They hugged – what a weird thing to do, after so many years. They did hug once in Twin Peaks. It was a nice hug, a warm hug, but this time, it was different. They didn’t kiss in Twin Peaks. Now, Harry had some regrets:  
\- I should have done that years ago.  
He could feel Albert’s smiling on his neck:  
\- You should have, indeed.  
His voice was raspy, lower than his thirty-three years old voice, but still, the future was the past, or the past was the future, when Albert whispered:  
\- I love you, Sheriff Truman.

**Author's Note:**

> I don't even watch Star Trek, but I saw a post on Tumblr about the salute, and I had to use it here, for Nerd!Albert.


End file.
